Embracing the inescapable joys of sound.

Marionette – Review

They may be unfamiliar faces in the UK, but that doesn’t stop these eager Swedes from dissecting themselves down to the very bone and letting everyone watch for fun.

So are they simply just another over-zealous Scandinavian death metal band? Well no, not quite. Marionette not only hold the kind of energy that could give two tectonic plates a run for their money, but they also have the fierce yet sophisticated sound to match.

Closer to home, both support acts from Newcastle gave worthy warm-ups. In a set dedicated to He-Man, Convolution strengthened with every song. Danny Coxan’s stage banter was on form as usual, along with his adaptable vocals, veering from harsh to clean in quick succession, while Carl Dunn exhibited some fantastic lead picking.

Beyond The Grave showed what a difference a venue can have, with a much better sound than their O2 Academy performance supporting Blitzkrieg. The guitar duelling was a pleasure to listen to and even though it isn’t the most innovatively mastered outfit you’ll hear, things seemed tighter.

They may have been marred by some slight sound problems at the beginning but looking back that was never going to stop Marionette’s phenomenal show.

As soon as their second song, Flies began there was a general sense that this was going to be special. Beneath the brutal external shell, there lies a silky undercoating of precious and succinct melodic work – making Marionette very unique in their effective marriage of beautiful juxtapositions.

While there are countless bands that blindly look for ruthlessness, Marionette take a step back before cocking up a leg and putting their own scent of individualism on a brash sound. Added keyboard parts from Linus Johansson contribute further to the lush density of sound that engulfs their stage.

Lead vocalist Alexander Andersson completes the already unremitting electricity onstage. As far as frontmen go they don’t come in more charismatic form with Andersson writhing in a haste of hoarse screams, constantly animated. New song, Remember Your Name, was a pain-filled epic that couldn’t be forgotten.

Marionette ended the set with Black Hand and, despite the low crowd volume, from beginning to end every member showed no signs of lagging.

Placing brazened aggressiveness beside melodic perfection, Marionette have invented an extraordinary entity that is certain to muster up support – and fast. Don’t be surprised to see a lot more of them.